Robert Griffin III (10) didn't miss a beat Sunday, a week after the Redskins rookie suffered a concussion. / Paul Frederiksen, US Presswire

by USA TODAY Sports, USA TODAY

by USA TODAY Sports, USA TODAY

Now that you've slept on the scores and digested the stats, here's an in-depth look at Week 6 of the NFL season, with observations and analysis by the USA TODAY Sports team.

Take your time reading it while the Baltimore Ravens medical staff looks at Ray Lewis' MRI and determines the extent of his triceps injury.

Ten things to look for in Week 7

1. The Seattle Seahawks have a chance to prove their legitimacy in San Francisco, though the 49ers are coming off a humbling defeat to the New York Giants at home that should get them focused on a short week. The 49ers are favored by more than a touchdown in Thursday's game vs. Seattle.

2. The New York Jets will travel to Foxborough, Mass., to face the New England Patriots. But Jets coach Rex Ryan, coming off Sunday's 35-9 whipping of the Indianapolis Colts, says he's "not ready to pull on Superman's cape just yet," even though his team tends to get mouthiest prior to matchups with New England. This has been a heated rivalry in recent years. This year, the Jets would be lucky to keep it within one score.

3. "Bob" vs. the New York Giants. OK, so Osi Umenyiora, after teasing Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III by calling him "Bob" over the summer, told USA TODAY Sports after Week 1 that Griffin had earned his "RGIII" nickname with his play. But let's see how gushing Umenyiora will be this week, leading up to his first matchup with the rookie. After suffering a concussion eight days ago, Griffin showed no effects in a take-charge performance Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

4. Sunday could mark the first game of the post-Ray Lewis era. Maybe. With a triceps injury that could be season-ending, it might be time for the Baltimore Ravens to move on. First up, the Houston Texans, who are coming off an embarrassing loss to the Green Bay Packers.

5. Andrew Luck vs. Brandon Weeden. No, really. Let's see the rookie quarterbacks go at it, especially now that Weeden, who celebrated his 29th birthday Sunday with the Cleveland Browns' first victory of the season, is off the skids.

6. Who will be more resilient - the Arizona Cardinals or Minnesota Vikings? Both teams are coming off disappointing losses. One will respond to go to 5-2. The other will slip toward mediocrity, where many had them pegged coming into the season.

7. Are we about to witness the rebirth of the Oakland Raiders? They host the Jacksonville Jaguars in the first of three straight winnable games. If they're 4-4 heading into Baltimore on Nov. 11, we won't be surprised.

8. The New Orleans Saints return from their bye, which leads to the usual questions: Will they carry momentum from their Week 5 victory over the San Diego Chargers with them? Or will the Bountygate suspension reaffirmations drag them down again?

9. Are the Dallas Cowboys staring at a 2-4 start? After their opening-night victory over the Giants, many proclaimed this the year the Cowboys returned to the upper echelon of the NFL. But this season has gone the way many have - with tough losses and doubters wondering if Tony Romo is the right guy to take the Cowboys back to the promised land. Sunday, they face the Carolina Panthers coming off a bye and the real chance of falling into a huge hole in the NFC East.

10. The Green Bay Packers could finally climb above .500 for the first time this season. Why do we have the feeling it's going to be a lot harder than it sounds given their matchup with the Rams in St. Louis?

Taking stock

Here's a look at the NFL market and whether we're getting in or out.

BUY: The New York Giants' Domenik Hixon as one of the most underrated wide receivers in the league. Not buying yet? See his sprawling catch from Sunday during which he kept his hand under the football and get back to us.

SELL: Talk of Matt Ryan in that top level of quarterbacks. Not that he can't get there; just that Sunday's three-interception showing drops him down a peg.

BUY: The Seattle Seahawks. If they find a way to score from the 4-yard line in Week 1, they're 5-1. Of course, if the replacement refs make the proper call against the Green Bay Packers, they're 4-2. Either way, Pete Carroll's bunch is in the mix.

SELL: The Baltimore Ravens' defense - with our without Ray Lewis. That was an awful display of tackling on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. At 396.7 yards allowed per game, this previously proud unit is struggling.

BUY: The Green Bay Packers without Cedric Benson. Seriously, with Aaron Rodgers leading that passing game, who cares who's running the ball?

SELL: The Dallas Cowboys' Dez Bryant begging for pass interference on a failed two-point conversion. If he catches the ball, the flag doesn't matter.

BUY: The Cleveland Browns as one seriously pesky opponent. Even in their five losses, they've usually hung tough.

SELL: The security of the record for longest field goal (63 yards, shared by four kickers). With Greg (Legatron) Zuerlein's having the distance on a 66-yarder that went wide left, that's going to fall. And soon.

BUY: The Miami Dolphins' chances of staying alive through Thanksgiving. With the New York Jets, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, Buffalo Bills and Seattle Seahawks on the slate, it's possible the 3-3 Dolphins could be above .500 in December.

SELL: The report of the Kansas City Chiefs offering a contract extension to GM Scott Pioli. That can't possibly be true, can it? The Kansas City Star says it's not.

Week 6 awards

Comeback player of the week: Robert Griffin III did everything right, from passing every concussion test to snapping the Redskins' eight-game home losing skid with another great performance. A week after he looked like he'd miss at least one start, RGIII didn't skip a beat. He passed for one touchdown and ran for two more, including an electrifying 76-yarder that enabled the 3-3 Redskins to head into Sunday's NFC East showdown one game behind the New York Giants.

Biggest disappointment: Despite carrying a football around the Philadelphia Eagles facility to improve his ball security this week, quarterback Michael Vick committed three more turnovers, two interceptions and his eighth lost fumble. Since Vick has committed a rookie-like 13 turnovers in six games, what's the harm in seeing what rookie backup Nick Foles can do after Sunday's 26-23 overtime loss to the Detroit Lions?

Under the radar: Ronde Barber, 37, returned for his 16th season because he still loves football and continues playing at a high level. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety, the NFL's Dorian Gray, returned an interception 78 yards for the eighth touchdown return in a career that has spanned 221 starts, including 204 in a row.

- Few expected the Dolphins to be good this season with a rookie head coach breaking in a rookie quarterback. But Ryan Tannehill did enough against St. Louis - on a day his running game provided just 19 yards - to lead his team to a 3-3 record.

- Signed a week earlier, Jason Hill caught his first touchdown pass as a New York Jet, giving Mark Sanchez a bookend set of red-zone Hills: Jason and Stephen (no relation).

Under the microscope: It's time to worry about the Pittsburgh Steelers defense, with safety Troy Polamalu's ominous calf injury and the failure of anyone to fill the void left by retired run-stopping defensive end Aaron Smith. Pittsburgh is under .500 for the first time during the Mike Tomlin era, with the AFC North rival Cincinnati Bengals up next.

- The Patriots' running game had been a twin-chambered heart with Stevan Ridley and rookie Brandon Bolden, but they combined for only 62 yards on the ground in Sunday's slip-up in Seattle and will have to come up much bigger Sunday against the rival Jets.

- Romeo Crennel's 1-5 Chiefs have lost their last three games. And it's clearly not Matt Cassel's fault. Backup Brady Quinn was no solution, while Crennel's defense allowed 463 yards to Josh Freeman and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

We'd be concerned if we were ...

Ravens coach John Harbaugh, who is without two of his top three defensive leaders in Terrell Suggs (Achilles' tendon) and Ray Lewis, who will find out Monday the severity of a right triceps injury suffered in a tight win against Dallas yesterday. Up next, a road game Sunday against the Houston Texans, who were spanked Sunday night. It doesn't help the Ravens that Haloti Ngata has been playing through knee and shoulder pain.

Colts interim coach Bruce Arians, who doesn't have enough of a run game to ease the pressure on rookie quarterback Andrew Luck. Donald Brown is out the next few weeks following a knee procedure. Luck had his worst game this season, throwing two interceptions and losing a fumble against the Jets.

Bill Belichick, because his secondary surrendered 14 points to the Seahawks in the final 7:31 Sunday, including an inexplicable 46-yard, game-winning touchdown when receiver Sidney Rice got behind rookie safety Tavon Wilson.

We'd feel pretty good if we were ...

Jets power back Shonn Greene, who apparently needs at least 25 carries to get in rhythm. Greene figures to get plenty of work the next two weeks against New England and Miami before the bye. Backup Bilal Powell is likely sidelined indefinitely by a right shoulder injury.

Lions coach Jim Schwartz, whose team is coming off an overtime win, now that running back Jahvid Best is confident he'll finally be cleared to begin practicing Monday, perhaps in time to play Week 7 against the Chicago Bears.

Don't be surprised if ...

Aaron Rodgers and the Packers catch fire and go on a run with winnable games against St. Louis, Jacksonville and Arizona before the bye.

Minnesota Vikings second-year quarterback Christian Ponder comes back to earth after Minnesota's 4-1 start. Ponder had an interception returned for a touchdown, and his lost fumble set up another score in Sunday's defeat to the Redskins. Teams have learned how to pressure Ponder.

The Giants' front four finds a way to keep RGIII from breaking containment at MetLife Stadium Sunday. The Giants are 0-2 in the division and need to back up an impressive win at San Francisco with an important home game.

The Cowboys don't recover from their 2-3 hole. Their offensive line isn't good enough, coach Jason Garrett's late-game clock management cost them again Sunday, and they seem headed for another 8-8 finish.

Rodgers back in MVP conversation

The last player not named Peyton Manning to win consecutive NFL MVP awards was Brett Favre, who brought home the hardware three seasons in a row from 1995 to 1997.

But there's little doubt Aaron Rodgers, who will spend the rest of his career trying to match feats with Favre, would like to join the list of repeat winners.

And you can put A-Rod squarely back into the MVP discussion after he threw a career-high six TD passes Sunday night as the Packers convincingly sent the previously unbeaten Texans to their first loss 42-24.

Rodgers, who threw 45 touchdowns in 15 starts last season, now has a league-best 16 TD passes and 105.4 passer rating and seems determined to carry the 3-3 Packers back into the league's elite ranks.

He put his finger to his lips and replied: "Shhhh" to end his postgame interview.

Rodgers, who vowed to pick up his play during his weekly radio show after the Week 5 loss to the Colts, has been solid all season - he's now thrown 13 TDs vs. two INTs over the past three weeks - but this was easily his best effort of the year.

He finished with 338 yards through the air against a vaunted Houston defense and connected for at least one score in every quarter. He and Jordy Nelson hooked up for three TDs.

"We were all just tired of answering questions about, 'What happened to the Packers?' (and) 'What happened to me?' It was a good team effort tonight," Rodgers said. "Just getting back to the way we were capable of playing. We haven't gone anywhere."

Meanwhile, early season MVP frontrunner Matt Ryan of the Falcons was picked off three times Sunday by the Raiders, doubling his season interception total to six. But despite his poorest outing of 2012, Ryan still managed to lead a game-winning drive that ended with a 55-yard field goal from Matt Bryant that left the Falcons sitting at 6-0 as NFL's final perfect team.

As long as Atlanta keeps winning, Ryan will almost surely remain atop the MVP polls. But at least he finally seems to have some competition.